Airless spray gun

ABSTRACT

An airless spray gun is disclosed herein which has a substantially reduced number of component parts. The gun includes a trigger locking assembly for preventing the actuation of the spray gun as desired. The airless spray gun also includes a novel valve rod and means for detachably mounting the same in the gun which permits rapid assembly and disassembly of the gun. An improved valve seat is also disclosed which substantially reduces the cost of manufacturing the same.

O Umted States Patent 1191 1111 3,

Malec Dec. 25, 1973 [5 AIRLESS SPRAY GUN 3,410,491 11/1968 Malec 239/52676 l tor: Jerr P. Mal 5108 N. 85th St., 1 men g f k Primary Examiner-M.Henson Wood, .lr. Assistant Examiner-John J. Love Filed: Jan. 21, 19Att0rney-Zarley, McKee & Thomte [21] Appl. No.: 219,699

[57] ABSTRACT [52] us. c1 239/526 239/583 251/98 airless Sway gun isdimmed herein which has a substantially reduced number of componentparts. 511 11.1.c1 B05b 1/30 The gun includes a trigger assembly [58]Field of Search 251/111 98- Venting the the spray gun as desired The239/526 528 412 583 airless spray gun also includes a novel valve rodand means for detachably mounting the same in the gun [56] ReferencesCited which permits rapid assembly and disassembly of the UNITED STATESPATENTS gun. An improved valve seat is also disclosed whichsubstantially reduces the cost of manufacturing the 3,380,705 4/!968Enssle 251/89 Same 3,515,355 6/1970 Wagner 239/526 3,190,564 6/1965Liedberg 1. 239/583 X 6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures 5 I 79 /0 M Z0 61 35 Z68 Z 56 6 53 90 70 42 Z .76 1 ,1 I 38 as 1 g I 7 44 AIRLESS SPRAY GUNConventional airless spray guns have an extremely large number ofcomponent parts which greatly adds to the cost of manufacturing thesame. Conventional airless spray guns are not easily assembled anddisassembled due to the means for mounting the valve rods in the gun.The assembly and disassembly of the conventional airless spray guns isalso difficult and time consuming due to the construction of the triggerlocking assemblies. The present means for manufacturing the valve seatsof the conventional airless spray guns is also time consuming andexpensive.

Therefore, it is a principal object of this invention to provide animproved airless spray gun.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunhaving a substantially reduced number of component parts.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunwhich is easily manufactured.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunincluding novel means for mounting the valve rod therein.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunwhich is quickly and easily assembled and disassembled.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunhaving a novel valve seat provided therein.

A further object of this invention is to provide an airless spray gunwhich is efficient in operation, durable in use and refined inappearance.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

This invention consists in the construction, arrangements, andcombination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objectscontemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth,specifically pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. I is a side view of the gun of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the gun as seen along lines 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the gun.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view as seen along lines 44 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 3 except that the trigger isshown in its depressed position.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the nozzle assembly,.manifoldassembly and trigger locking assembly.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view as seen along lines 77 of FIG. 6;and

FIG. 8 is a side view of the trigger sleeve as it would appear afterbeing rotated to permit its removal from the gun.

The airless spray gun of this invention is referred to generally by thereference numeral 10 and includes a handle 12 which extends downwardlyfrom gun body 14. For purposes of description, the numeral 16 designatesa wall member which extends downwardly from the forward end of body 14and thence defines a trigger guard 18. Bore 20 extends through body 14and is aligned with a bore 22 extending through wall member 16. Thebores 20 and 22 may be drilled in the gun in one operation due to theiraligned relationship and due to the fact that they have the samediameters which substantially reduces the cost of manufacturing the gun.

Manifold 24 has a cylindrical portion 26 which is received by the bore22 as seen in FIG. 3 and which is maintained therein by means ofmanifold retainer nut 28 threadably secured to the rearward end thereof.Manifold 24 is prevented from rotational movement with respect to thegun body by means of manifold pin 30 extending rearwardly from themanifold 24 into the bore 32 formed in wall member 16. Manifoldconnector 34 extends downwardly from manifold 24 for connection to asource of spray material.

The numeral 36 refers to a carbide valve seat positioned in valve tip 38and maintained therein by valve sleeve 40 which is threadably receivedby valve tip 38 as illustrated in FIG. 3. Valve tip 38 is threadablyreceived by the forward end of manifold 24 so that valve sleeve 40 ispositioned in bore 42 of manifold 24. A nylon valve seal 44 ispositioned forwardly of tip 38 with spray nozzle 46 being positionedforwardly of seal 44. Valve gasket 45 is positioned between the forwardend of manifold 24 and the head of the valve tip 38. Nozzle 46 and seal44 are maintained in position by the spray nozzle retainer 48 which isthreadably mounted on manifold 42 as seen in FIG. 3.

Valve rod 50 is longitudinally movably received by valve sleeve 40 andhas a valve ball 52 mounted on the forward end thereof adapted to seatupon the valve seat 36. Valve rod 50 has a transversely extending valvepin 54 at its forward end which is detachably received by connecting rodconnector 56. Connector 56 is provided with a circular bore 58 extendinginwardly thereinto from its forward end. A pair of oppositely disposedgrooves 60 and 62 are formed in connector 56 which communicate with bore58 as seen in the drawings. The grooves 60 and 62 are adapted toremovably receive the opposite ends of the valve pin 54 so thatlongitudinal movement of connector 56 will cause longitudinal movementof rod 50.

Connector rod 64 is threadably secured to the rearward end of connector56 and extends rearwardly therefrom through a Teflon packing 65 andthrough a manifold packing nut 66 threadably mounted in manifold 24.Lock nut 68 prevents rod 64 from becoming accidentally disconnected fromconnector 56.

Trigger sleeve 70 is slidably mounted in bore 20 and has a bore 72extending therethrough which receives the connecting rod 64. Therearward end of bore 72 is provided with an enlarged diameter portion toreceive the snap-ring 74 which is detachably secured to the rod 64.Thus, rearward movement of sleeve 70 causes rod 64 and the componentssecured thereto to be moved rearwardly. Sleeve 70 has a vertical groove76 at its forward end which is adapted to receive the upper end oftrigger 78. Trigger 78 is pivoted at its upper end by means of triggerscrew 80.

Sleeve 70 is provided with a milled flat 82 which extends forwardly fromthe rearward end thereof. Sleeve 70 is also provided with a channel 84which is formed therein forwardly of the rearward end thereof and whichextends transversely with respect to the longitudinal axis of the sleeveand which communicates with the forward end of the flat 82. A flat 86 isformed at the intersection of flat" 82 and channel 84. Locating pin 85extends through the body 14 and through the channel 84 of sleeve 70 tolimit the rearward and forward movement of the sleeve and to maintainthe sleeve 70 within the bore 20.

The forward end of trigger spring 88 is received in the rearward end ofthe enlarged diameter portion of the bore 72. The rearward end of spring88 is received by bore 90 in sleeve lock 92. Sleeve lock 92 has achannel 98 formed therein which is transversely disposed with respect tothe longitudinal axis thereof which is adapted to receive the locatorpin 100 extending through body 14. Channel 98 has a sufficient verticalheight to permit the sleeve lock 92 to be selectively sufficientlyrotated to permit the locking of the trigger as will be explainedhereinafter.

Tension cap 102 is adjustably threadably mounted in sleeve lock 92 asseen in FIG. 3 to permit the selective tension adjustment of spring 88since the forward end of cap 102 engages the rearward end of the spring88. Lock pin 104 extends forwardly from the forward end of sleeve lock92 and terminates rearwardly of the rearward end of trigger sleeve 70when the trigger is in its normal position (FIG. 3).

The normal method of operation is as follows. Assuming that the gun isin its assembled condition and that the trigger is in its normalposition as illustrated in FIG. 3, the spray fluid will not bypass thevalve ball 52 since the spring 88 urges the valve ball 52 into seatingengagement with the valve seat 36. It can be seen that the rearward endsof the grooves 60 and 62 bear against the rearward ends of the valve pin54 to urge the valve rod 50 towards the valve seat 36. With the lockknob 94 in its unlocked position as seen in FIGS. 3 and 5, pivotalmovement of the trigger 78 causes the trigger sleeve 70 to be slidablymoved rearwardly in the bore 20. Rearward slidable movement of thetrigger sleeve 70 causes the connecting rod 64 to pull the valve rod 50rearwardly from the valve seat 36. Rearward slidable movement of thetrigger sleeve 70 is permitted since the lock pin 104 will be receivedby the flat 82. The trigger may be locked by simply rotated the lockknob 94 which causes the sleeve lock 92 to be rotated. Rotation of thesleeve lock 92 to its locked position causes the lock pin 104 to bemoved with respect to the flat" 82 so that the lock pin 104 will beclosely adjacent the rearward end of the trigger sleeve 70. When thelock knob is in its locked position, the pin 104 prevents the triggersleeve 70 from slidably moving rearwardly since the pin 104 will nolonger be received by the flat 82 but will engage the rearward end ofthe trigger sleeve 70.

The construction of the gun permits the valve rod 50 to be removedtherefrom without disassembling the entire gun as is the case with mostconventional guns. The valve rod 50 is removed by simply removing thespray nozzle retainer 48 and the valve seal 44 from the forward end ofthe manifold. The valve tip 38 is then threadably removed from themanifold 24 which exposes the forward end of the valve rod 50. The valverod 50 is then grasped and pivoted or moved with respect to theconnecting rod connector 56 so that one of the pins of the valve pin 54can be disengaged from its respective groove which then permits thevalve rod 50 to be removed from the connecting rod connector 56. Therelationship of the diameters of the valve rod 50, opening 58 and thewidth of the grooves 60 and 62 is such that the valve rod 50 may besufficiently pivoted or moved to cause the disengagement of the valvepin elements from the grooves 60 and 62. Thus, the value rod 50 can beremoved from the manifold without removing the connecting rod connector56 or any of the components rearwardly thereof.

If it is desired to further disassemble the gun, the manifold packingnut 66 and the manifold retainer nut 28 are also removed from therearward end of the manifold 24. The trigger screw is then removed topermit the trigger to be moved downwardly so that the trigger may bedisengaged from the vertical groove 76 of trigger sleeve 70. The triggersleeve 70 is then manually rotated with respect to the locating pin sothat the trigger sleeve 70 may be removed from the bore 20 in aforwardly direction therefrom. This is made possible by the flat" 86which permits the rotation of the sleeve 70 so that the flat 82 will bepositioned over the locating pin 85. When the flat" 82 is so located,the sleeve 70 may be slidably moved forwardly from the bore 20 withoutremoving the locator pin 85. The snap ring 74 may then be removed fromthe connecting rod 64 which permits substantially complete disassemblyof the gunfThe lock mechanism may be removed from the gun by removingthe locator pin 100.

FIG. 7 illustrates the configuration of the valve seat 36 in somewhatgreater detail. The seat 36 is formed by casting the same from carbide.The opening would be formed during the casting and would have theangularly disposed surfaces 112 and 113. The opening 110 is then groundand lapped at the intersection of the surfaces 112 and 113 so that asurface 114 is formed which is tangent to valve ball 52. It is easier togrind a tangent on the carbide where the two surfaces 112 and 113intersect then to grind an entire single angle cone. The intersection ofthe surfaces 112 and 113 requires very littlegrinding and lapping ascompared to a normal seat of a single angle which must be ground overits entire internal surface and substantially reduces grinding andoverlapping time.

I claim:

1. An airless spray gun comprising,

a gun body,

a valve means on said gun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid,

a trigger pivotally secured to said gun body and being operativelyconnected to said valve means for controlling said valve means, saidtrigger being movable from a first position wherein said valve means isclosed to a second position wherein said valve means is open,

and a lock means on said gun body, said lock means comprising a firstmember operatively connected to said trigger for movement therewith andbeing slidably mounted in said gun body, a second member rotatablymounted in said gun body having one end thereof adjacent one end of saidfirst member, said second member being fixed against axial movement, andcooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first and second memberswhich permits said first member to be slidably moved so that saidtrigger can be moved to its second position when said second member hasbeen rotated to a first predetermined position with respect to said gunbody and said first member, said cooperating means preventing theslidable movement of said first member to prevent the movement of saidtrigger to said second position when said second member has been rotatedto a second predetermined position,

said cooperating means comprising a stop element extending from said oneend of said second member towards said one end of said first member,said first member having a portion of its said one end cut-away so thatsaid stop element may be received thereby when said second element hasbeen rotated to its said first position,

said stop element being an elongated pin means which is adapted toengage the said one end of said first member to limit the slidablemovement of said first member towards said second member when saidsecond member is in said second position.

2. An airless spray gun comprising,

a gun body,

a valve means on said gun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid,

a trigger pivotally secured to said gun body and being operativelyconnected to said valve means for controlling said valve means, saidtrigger being movable from a first position wherein said valve means isclosed to a second position wherein said valve means is open,

and a lock means on said gun body, said lock means comprising a firstmember operatively connected to said trigger for movement therewith andbeing slidably mounted in said gun body, a second member rotatablymounted in said gun body having one end thereof adjacent one end of saidfirst member, said second member being fixed against axial movement, andcooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first and second memberswhich permits said first member to be slidably moved so that saidtrigger can be moved to its second position when said second member hasbeen rotated to a first predetermined position with respect to said gunbody and said first member, said cooperating means preventing theslidable movement of said first member to prevent the movement of saidtrigger to said second position when said second member has been rotatedto a second predetermined position,

said cooperating means comprising a stop element extending from said oneend of said second member towards said one end of said first member,said first member having a portion of its said one end cut-away so thatsaid stop element may be received thereby when said second element hasbeen rotated to its said first position,

said first member being a substantially cylindrical shaped member havinga top and a bottom, and opposite sides, said cut-away portion extendingforwardly into said one end of said first member, said first memberhaving a substantially inverted U- shaped channel formed thereinintermediate its length extending upwardly thereinto from said bottom, alocating pin means extending through said gun body and through saidU-shaped channel to limit the longitudinal movement of said firstmember, said U-shaped channel communicating with said cut-away portionso that said first member may be selectively rotated a predeterminedamount to permit said first member to be slidably moved forwardly, forremoval from the gun body, without removing said locating pin from saidgun body.

3. .T he airless spray gun of claim 2 wherein the intersection of saidcut-away portion and said channel is flat" to permit the said rotationof said first member.

4. An airless spray gun comprising,

a gun body,

a valve means on said gun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid,

valve trigger pivotally secured to said gun body and being operativelyconnected to said valve means for controlling said vlave means, saidtrigger being movable from a first position wherein said valve means isclosed to a second position wherein said valve means is open,

and a lock means on said gun body, said lock means comprising a firstmember operatively connected to said trigger for movement therewith andbeing slidably mounted in said gun body, a second member rotatablymounted in said gun body having one end thereof adjacent one end of saidfirst member, said second member being fixed against axial movement, andcooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first and second memberswhich permits said first member to be slidably moved so that saidtrigger can be moved to its second position when said second member hasbeen rotated to a first predetermined position with respect to said gunbody and said first member, said cooperating means preventing theslidable movement of said first member to prevent the movement of saidtrigger to said second position when said second member has been rotatedto a second predetermined position,

a tensioning spring extending between said first and second memberswhich yieldably urges said trigger to its said first position.

5. The airless spray gun of claim 4 wherein said second member has arearward end and wherein a tension cap means threadably extends into therearward end of said second member for engagement with one end of saidtensioning spring to permit the selective tensioning of said spring.

6. An airless spray gun comprising,

a gun body,

a valve means on said gun body for controlling the a trigger pivotallysecured to said gun body and being operatively connected to said valvemeans for controlling said valve means, said trigger being movable froma first position wherein said valve means is closed to a second positionwherein said valve means is open,

and a lock means on said gun body, said lock means comprising a firstmember operatively connected to said trigger for movement therewith andbeing slidably mounted in said gun body, a second member rotatablymounted in said gun body having one end thereof adjacent one end of saidfirst member, said second member being fixed against axial movement, andcooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first and second memberswhich permits said first member to be slidably moved so that saidtrigger can be moved to its second position when said second member hasbeen rotated to a first predetermined position with respect to said gunbody and said first member, said cooperating means preventing theslidable movement of said first member to prevent the movement of saidtrigger to said second position when said second member has been rotatedto a second predetermined position,

first and second aligned bores formed therein, said lock means beingpositioned in said first bore, said valve means being mounted in amanifold means having one end thereof positioned in said second bore,said trigger being positioned between said first and second bores.

1. An airless spray gun comprising, a gun body, a valve means on saidgun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid, a trigger pivotallysecured to said gun body and being operatively connected to said valvemeans for controlling said valve means, said trigger being movable froma first position wherein said valve means is closed to a second positionwherein said valve means is open, and a lock means on said gun body,said lock means comprising a first member operatively connected to saidtrigger for movement therewith and being slidably mounted in said gunbody, a second member rotatably mounted in said gun body having one endthereof adjacent one end of said first member, said second member beingfixed against axial movement, and cooperating means on the adjacent endsof said first and second members which permits said first member to beslidably moved so that said trigger can be moved to its second positionwhen said second member has been rotated to a first predeterminedposition with respect to said gun body and said first member, saidcooperating means preventing the slidable movement of said first memberto prevent the movement of said trigger to said second position whensaid second member has been rotated to a second predetermined position,said cooperating means comprising a stop element extending from said oneend of said second member towards said one end of said first member,said first member having a portion of its said one end cut-away so thatsaid stop element may be received thereby when said second element hasbeen rotated to its said first position, said stop element being anelongated pin means which is adapted to engage the said one end of saidfirst member to limit the slidable movement of said first member towardssaid second member when said second member is in said second position.2. An airless spray gun comprising, a gun body, a valve means on saidgun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid, a trigger pivotallysecured to said gun body and being operatively connected to said valvemeans for controlling said valve means, said trigger being movable froma first position wherein said valve means is closed to a second positionwherein said valve means is open, and a lock means on said gun body,said lock means comprising a first member operatively connected to saidtrigger for movement therewith and being slidably mounted in said gunbody, a second member rotatably mounted in said gun body having one endthereof adjacent one end of said first member, said second member beingfixed against axial movement, and cooperating means on the adjacent endsof said first and second members which permits said first member to beslidably moved so that said trigger can be moved to its second positionwhen said second member has been rotated to a first predeterminedposition with respect to said gun body and said first member, saidcooperating means preventing the slidable movement of said first memberto pRevent the movement of said trigger to said second position whensaid second member has been rotated to a second predetermined position,said cooperating means comprising a stop element extending from said oneend of said second member towards said one end of said first member,said first member having a portion of its said one end cut-away so thatsaid stop element may be received thereby when said second element hasbeen rotated to its said first position, said first member being asubstantially cylindrical shaped member having a top and a bottom, andopposite sides, said cut-away portion extending forwardly into said oneend of said first member, said first member having a substantiallyinverted U-shaped channel formed therein intermediate its lengthextending upwardly thereinto from said bottom, a locating pin meansextending through said gun body and through said U-shaped channel tolimit the longitudinal movement of said first member, said U-shapedchannel communicating with said cut-away portion so that said firstmember may be selectively rotated a predetermined amount to permit saidfirst member to be slidably moved forwardly, for removal from the gunbody, without removing said locating pin from said gun body.
 3. Theairless spray gun of claim 2 wherein the intersection of said cut-awayportion and said channel is ''''flat'''' to permit the said rotation ofsaid first member.
 4. An airless spray gun comprising, a gun body, avalve means on said gun body for controlling the flow of spray fluid,valve trigger pivotally secured to said gun body and being operativelyconnected to said valve means for controlling said vlave means, saidtrigger being movable from a first position wherein said valve means isclosed to a second position wherein said valve means is open, and a lockmeans on said gun body, said lock means comprising a first memberoperatively connected to said trigger for movement therewith and beingslidably mounted in said gun body, a second member rotatably mounted insaid gun body having one end thereof adjacent one end of said firstmember, said second member being fixed against axial movement, andcooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first and second memberswhich permits said first member to be slidably moved so that saidtrigger can be moved to its second position when said second member hasbeen rotated to a first predetermined position with respect to said gunbody and said first member, said cooperating means preventing theslidable movement of said first member to prevent the movement of saidtrigger to said second position when said second member has been rotatedto a second predetermined position, a tensioning spring extendingbetween said first and second members which yieldably urges said triggerto its said first position.
 5. The airless spray gun of claim 4 whereinsaid second member has a rearward end and wherein a tension cap meansthreadably extends into the rearward end of said second member forengagement with one end of said tensioning spring to permit theselective tensioning of said spring.
 6. An airless spray gun comprising,a gun body, a valve means on said gun body for controlling the flow ofspray fluid, a trigger pivotally secured to said gun body and beingoperatively connected to said valve means for controlling said valvemeans, said trigger being movable from a first position wherein saidvalve means is closed to a second position wherein said valve means isopen, and a lock means on said gun body, said lock means comprising afirst member operatively connected to said trigger for movementtherewith and being slidably mounted in said gun body, a second memberrotatably mounted in said gun body having one end thereof adjacent oneend of said first member, said second member being fixed against axialmovement, and cooperating means on the adjacent ends of said first andsecond members which permits said first member to be slidably moved sothat said trigger can be moved to its second position when said secondmember has been rotated to a first predetermined position with respectto said gun body and said first member, said cooperating meanspreventing the slidable movement of said first member to prevent themovement of said trigger to said second position when said second memberhas been rotated to a second predetermined position, first and secondaligned bores formed therein, said lock means being positioned in saidfirst bore, said valve means being mounted in a manifold means havingone end thereof positioned in said second bore, said trigger beingpositioned between said first and second bores.